1 Crown Office Row

Led by head of chambers Richard Booth KC, the London branch houses just over 80 barristers, including an impressive 23 silks. Members have been instructed in many of the largest and most sensitive public inquiry and public law matters in recent years, appearing in the Thirlwall, Undercover Policing, Nottingham, Southport, Grenfell Tower, Paterson, Covid-19, Infected Blood and Post Office Horizon IT inquiries. They have also featured in headline-grabbing cases such as the legal challenges to the government’s Rwanda asylum policy, Shamima Begum’s appeal, and high-profile tax disputes concerning VAT in private schools.

Several silks and juniors have led major independent reviews and investigations, including the McCullough Review, Operation Kenova and the Forde Report into the Labour Party. Others advise government departments, regulators and public bodies on complex legal, ethical and governance matters. Alongside this, 1COR’s clinical negligence and personal injury practices remain top-ranked, with members frequently handling multi-million-pound catastrophic injury claims for both claimants and defendants. The set’s tax and medical law expertise also regularly takes members to the Supreme Court, showcasing the range and quality of its civil practice.

At the junior end, tenants highlight the early exposure to intellectually demanding and high-profile work. “At 1 Crown Office Row, I’ve had the opportunity to work on a remarkable range of cases spanning mainly public law and tax law,” says one junior. “Within my first few years of practice, I’ve been involved in a tax case before the Supreme Court as well as judicial reviews on behalf of the MOD. My practice now includes a mix of led work with distinguished silks and unled advocacy. I act for UK government departments as well as overseas governments, taxpayers and claimants. The breadth and quality of work here have provided exceptional early advocacy experience and exposure to complex, high-profile matters.”

Pupillage is described as demanding but carefully structured, with regular feedback and strong supervision. Training is “first rate”, according to insiders, and continues well beyond the pupillage year through seminars with medical experts, talks by silks on tactics and procedure, and an open culture of knowledge sharing. Pupils feel “encouraged to learn, question and develop [their] own style”, and juniors who responded to the Legal Cheek Junior Barrister Survey scored the set top marks for supportiveness. Colleagues are said to “go above and beyond for one another” and always “find time to chat over a difficult question”. This camaraderie, juniors say, is what truly sets 1COR apart.

Chambers life is notably social, with regular lunches, pub trips, quarterly celebrations and formal dinners that bring members together across levels of seniority. “I think 1 COR probably has one of the best social lives at the bar,” says one junior. Another adds, “It’s like a family — a happy one.” The set also takes work-life balance seriously and actively discourages weekend work. “1 COR is good at letting everyone do their own thing,” one member explains. “Some people work incredibly hard, others take a different approach, but there’s space for everyone — and no pressure from the clerks or anyone else.”

The chambers’ historic Temple building is also evolving. A major refurbishment, due for completion in August 2026, will introduce newly renovated conference rooms with advanced remote-conferencing systems while preserving the character of the original neo-Georgian design. Members say this blend of modern technology and traditional elegance “captures what 1 COR is all about”. As one member puts it, “Chambers has always boasted one of the most enviable spots in the Temple. With the renovations, its interiors now match the beauty of the building.”

Technology support is “first class”, with a dedicated IT manager described as a “wizard”, “incredible” and “the best IT and facilities manager at the Bar”. The set is also committed to access and diversity, offering assessed mini-pupillages for students from lower socio-economic backgrounds and providing strong support for members returning from parental leave.

With work spanning the full breadth of civil law, a culture of genuine collegiality and opportunities for even the most junior members to get involved in cases that make the headlines, 1 Crown Office Row offers an intellectually stimulating and rewarding pupillage in chambers that never stops teaching you something new.

The pupillage experience

I completed a five-day mini pupillage with 1 Crown Office Row before starting the Bar Course and this is what really drew me to Chambers. It’s difficult to get a true sense of a place from a website scrawl or single interview. However, the opportunity to spend a week in Chambers, seeing a range of work from advocacy in the High Court to mediations and paperwork, really gave me an insight into what life as a barrister may look like. In particular, I noted how genuinely supportive members were of one another. Over the week I felt those in Chambers were so generous with their time, both in answering my questions and those of other members who regularly popped their head around the door.

My pupillage experience only confirmed this initial impression. I had four supervisors over the year — all of whom had a slightly different focus to their practice. This allowed me to think proactively about the kind of practice I would like to develop and enabled me to develop skills in a range of areas. Some of my supervisors were in court regularly and I was able to shadow a range of trials; from a 10-day immigration case, a GDC disciplinary tribunal, a five-day discrimination case and a jury inquest. With another supervisor, I was able to hone my written skills, focusing on what makes an effective defence and learning exactly what an instructing solicitor is likely to appreciate in a written advice… which often isn’t a textbook on the law! I received written feedback on every piece of work I did and was also provided with the final piece that was sent to the client, which was an invaluable learning opportunity. I regularly went for lunch with people from Chambers from the most junior to the senior members and genuinely felt that people wanted me to do well.

The transition from pupil to tenant

I began on my feet during my second six and so this certainly eased the transition to tenancy. The main difference I felt straight away was the sense of control I had over my own practice. I had a practice development meeting with our clerks almost immediately and was able to set out the areas I was particularly interested in developing. Alongside this, I said yes to (pretty much!) every opportunity to be in Court. I really felt this helped my advocacy skills develop quickly, from learning what to do when instructions change last minute, to dealing with judicial intervention and developing your own judgment when you need to think on your feet. It’s a steep learning curve, but I found being round others in Chambers and not being afraid to ask questions the best way to learn quickly.

What is your practice like now?

I am a year into tenancy, and I really enjoy the mix of work. My practice at the moment is a mix of public law, clinical negligence, personal injury, employment and inquests. I have also undertaken two secondments, one in public law and one in employment law. Both of which have been great opportunities to improve my knowledge of the practice area, build relationships with solicitor clients and importantly understand cases from a firm’s perspective.

My work varies week by week. Getting into court and developing my advocacy is an important priority for me — so there are some weeks when I am in Court several times, particularly in inquests, personal injury work and employment matters. There are other weeks which are more desk based; drafting pleadings in a clinical negligence case, drafting grounds in a public matter or having a conference with medical experts. All draw on different skills and my approach, at this level, is that keeping things varied, helps make you a well-rounded barrister.

What is the culture of chambers?

Chambers really is a friendly place! And I can safely say, the open-door policy actually exists. I have found members (across all levels of seniority) to be very generous with their time, be it a phone call from a Court waiting room or a (not so quick) question about a tricky legal point in Chambers.

Similarly, the clerking team are responsive, supportive and approachable. We have regular practice development meetings where I have found I have been supported in setting out the practice I would like to develop and how to get there.

1COR also has a busy social calendar, with regular drinks, Chambers-wide lunches, Christmas and Summer parties, not to mention the many open invites to informal drinks and lunches. It really does feel like a place where many members are genuinely friends and not just colleagues.

Top tips for those wanting to become a barrister/secure a pupillage at your chambers

Three top tips:

1. Consider your application as a piece of advocacy. Think about your experience and how it demonstrates the skills needed by a barrister and particularly a barrister in the practice area you are expressing interest in. Focussing on this will help you be succinct and structure your answers well.
2. Look at the profiles of junior members of Chambers and understand what a junior practice is likely to look like. In your application try and make clear that you understand what the role of a barrister entails in the area of practice you are interested in.
3. Plan ahead. Embrace opportunities which come up and don’t be afraid to try things which are a bit different. Remember everyone’s route to the Bar is likely to look different and the more authentic you can be with what experience you have and why that makes you stand out… the better!

And finally, try not to get caught up comparing yourself to others. The earlier you learn this… the better!